Improvement in fastenings for shoes



' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE MERRILL, OF EAST ORANGE, NEW JERSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN FASTENINGS FOR SHOES, &c.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 134,761, datcd January 14, 1873.

To all uhom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE MERRILL, of East Orange, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain Improvements in Fastenings for Shoes, Garments, Src., of which the following is a speciiication, reference being had to the accompanying drawing. Y

My invention relates to a novel fastening to be used on shoes andv garments instead of the ordinary buttons; and it consists in a bar arranged to draw the two edges together and hold them, and a button or other device for locking the bar, as hereinafter described.

Figure l is a side view of a shoe having t-Wo of my fastenin gs applied, the flap being turned up to expose the fastenin gs, which differ slightly in form 5 Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the same shoe with the flap fastened down; Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views of the two forms of fastenings; and` Fig. 5 is a view showing the position of the parts while in the act of fastening the shoe.

Referring to the left hand in Fig. l, A represents a small metal bar lying across the inside of the flap D of the shoe, and attached thereto at its outer end. The inner end ofthe bar is left free so that it can be drawn out away from the flap, as shown in Fig. 5, and is formed with a hook or teat, a, as shown in Figs. l, 3, and 5. Through the outer end of the bar A, and through the ap, a small hole, b, is made, and an L-shaped arm or wire, E, mounted therein, as show-11 in Figs. l, 3, and 5, a button, i, being attached to the end of said arm on the outside of the flap, and serving as a means for turning the arm. B is another bar or plate secured rigidly7 tothe edge or face of the shoe opposite to the flap D, and provided in its forward end with a hole, c, and in the opposite end with a slot, d. When the shoe is to be fastened the flap is turned up and the hooked end a of the bar A insert-ed into the hole c of the plate B, as shown in Fig. 5, and then the upper `end of the bar A pushed down until it meets plate B, and then locked by turning the button e', which causes the arm E to engage in the slotted end d of plate B, as shown in Fig. 8. It will be noticed that when the end of plate A is first inserted into the hole in plate B it is turned out away from the flap, as in Fig. 5, so that when being forced down it acts as a toggle or lever to push or force the edge of the shoe back under the flap, the shoe being in this manner drawn up very tight. The plate B serves merely as a support and bearing for the bar A, and it may be dispensed with by arranging the parts in the manner shown in Fig. 4, and on the right hand in Fig. 1, where the hole c for the end of the bar is made in vthe front of the shoe, and the'end of bar A, instead of being provided With the sWiveled arm E, is formed with a slot, e,y and locked down by a button, o, attached to the front of the shoe and arranged to lock into the slotted end of the bar, as shown in Figs. 2 and 4. The bar is formed with a slight depression at the point where the button rests so as to prevent the button from slipping out accidentally and releasing the bar. This arrangement answers the same purpose as when the bar B isused, and, being cheaper', will be found preferable in many cases.

My fastenings may not only be applied to shoes, but to coats, and to various other garments and articles. The fastening enables the shoe or garment to be drawn up much tighter than when buttons are used. It avoids the necessity for buttoii-holes, which are eX- pensive to make and which soon become frayed and worn. It is stronger and less liable to become detached than buttons, and it avoids the use of the button-hook or other instrument for securing the fastenings.

When my fastenings are closed the flap conceals them from sight and leaves only the buttous exposed, so that the shoe presents the appearance of being but-toned in the usual manner.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A fastening for shoes, garments, Ste., consisting of a bar having one of its ends attached to one edge of the object and its opposite end left free to engage in the other edge of the same, in combination with a suitable device for fastening the free end down, when constructed and arranged substantially as shown and described.

2. The bar A, with the swiveled looking-arm E, in combination with the bar B, when constructed and arranged to operate substantially as set forth.

GEO. MERRILL.

Witnesses J. T. BROWN, MELVIN E. DOILLHAM. 

